When you’re admitted to hospital you expect to receive a reasonable standard of care from the medical professionals you encounter and from the hospital – and when this isn’t the case for you or a loved one, you may be able to make a claim for compensation, for you or your relative.
If a medical professional or hospital fails to provide a reasonable level of care and this failure results in an injury or even death, then you have grounds for making a clinical negligence claim.
Clinical negligence can have serious consequences, which can be life-changing or sometimes fatal. If your relative has died due to clinical negligence, there are steps you can take to bring a case against the medical professional or hospital for compensation.
How Can You Make A Clinical Negligence Claim For Your Relative?
You are able to make a clinical negligence claim on behalf of a relative that is damages-based or dependency-based or both:
- The Law Reform (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1934 (LRMPA)
Using this legislation, a claim for medical negligence damages can only be made by the administrator of your deceased relative’s estate or the executor of your relative’s Will. In terms of what you can claim for, you can claim for losses that your relative would have been entitled to for personal injuries due to the clinical negligence he or she suffered prior to death, including for pain and suffering, any loss of earnings, and funeral expenses if paid by your relative’s estate. If the claim is successful, the compensation amount would be paid to the estate and is shared according to your relative’s Will or the rules of intestacy. - The Fatal Accidents Act 1976 (FAA)
You can use this legislation to make a clinical negligence claim if you can prove you were dependent on your deceased relative. Dependants who may be able to claim include spouse, civil partner, children, and cohabiting partner if he or she lived in the same house for a minimum of two years. Claims can only be made by the administrator or the executor of the Will on behalf of the dependant, or a claim can be made directly by a dependant. You can claim for a range of measures, including loss of financial support, loss of dependency on your deceased relative’s services, statutory bereavement damages, and funeral expenses if paid for by you.
How We Can Help With Clinical Negligence Claims
Suffering the loss of a relative is a desperately sad time, and if this loss has been caused by medical malpractice then feelings of disbelief and your relative having been let down come into play too. You can claim for clinical negligence compensation if the medical care your relative received was inadequate – by claiming on his or her behalf.
The process of making a claim is complex and can be stressful, although our professional solicitors have the specialist clinical negligence claims experience needed to provide the very best advice and guidance to you at every stage of the claims process. All our support is tailored and expert, helping to ensure you receive the right compensation on behalf of your deceased relative.
Our experienced solicitors understand the sensitive nature of clinical negligence claims and provide personal advice on every aspect of your situation to help you to secure justice for your deceased loved one.
To speak to one of our personal injury specialist solicitors about making a clinical negligence claim on behalf of your deceased relative, contact us on 0800 988 3674 or email advice@bartletts.co.uk
